One of the problems encountered in the maintenance of hotels, bowling alleys, etc. is the removal of chewing gum and the like from flooring such as carpets. In smaller establishments it is common practice to simply rub an ice cube on the chewing gum and them chip the frozen gum off. Larger establishments typically use the same principle but freeze the chewing gum by spraying it with a compressed gas such as freon or the like. In any event, the typical procedures are labor intensive and do not always provide satisfactory results.